For Authors

This page explains how to prepare and submit a manuscript to an SSG journal. The requirements here apply to every journal. Each journal's homepage adds journal-specific details: article types, word limits, reference style, and fees. Please read both before you submit.

• Check the scope. Read the journal's Aims and Scope. Manuscripts outside the scope are returned without review.
• Check originality. Your manuscript must not be published, or under consideration, anywhere else. Preprints and conference abstracts are allowed (see Preprints and Prior Publication).
• Agree authorship. Every author must meet the authorship criteria and approve the submission.
• Prepare your declarations. You will need statements on funding, competing interests, ethics approval and consent (where relevant), data availability, author contributions (CRediT), and any use of generative AI.
• Get an ORCID iD. The corresponding author is strongly encouraged to have one, and we encourage all co-authors to have one too.

The Open Access Publishing Agreement and Author Declaration is signed by the corresponding author, on behalf of all authors, after acceptance and not at submission. Download the agreement.

3.1 Language and format

• Write in clear English. Use either British or American spelling, consistently.
• Submit an editable Word file (.docx), in single-column layout, with numbered lines and pages. LaTeX users may submit a PDF for review, with the source files at revision.
• Use SI units. Define every abbreviation the first time you use it, in both the abstract and the main text.
• If your English needs improving, you may use any language-editing service, or none. Using SSG's own Author Services or StepSphere is optional and has no effect on the editorial decision.

3.2 Anonymisation for double-anonymous review

• Remove names, affiliations, acknowledgements, funding grant numbers, and ethics committee names from the manuscript file. Keep these on the title page only.
• Cite your own earlier work in the third person, as in "Smith et al. (2023) showed…", not "In our previous work…".
• Remove identifying information from the file properties (author, company).

3.3 Title, abstract and keywords

• Title: specific and informative, with no unexplained abbreviations. As a guide, no more than 20 words.
• Abstract: 150–300 words, as a single paragraph, with no citations. State the problem, the method, the main quantitative results, and the conclusion. Research articles in MECOJ use a structured abstract (Background, Methods, Results, Conclusions).
• Keywords: 4–6 terms that are not already in the title.

3.4 Structure of a research article

1. Introduction: the problem, a focused review of recent literature, the gap, and the objectives.
2. Materials and Methods: enough detail for others to reproduce the work. This includes standards, equipment, materials, software and version, statistical methods, and ethics approval where relevant.
3. Results: presented clearly, with figures and tables. Do not repeat the same data in both.
4. Discussion: interpretation, comparison with earlier studies, and limitations.
5. Conclusions: the main findings and what they mean. No new results.
6. Back matter, on the title page or after the conclusions at revision: Author Contributions, Funding, Competing Interests, Data Availability, Use of Generative AI, Acknowledgements.
7. References.

Review articles explain how the literature was searched and selected: databases, keywords, date range, and inclusion criteria. Systematic reviews follow PRISMA.

3.5 Figures and tables

• Number figures and tables in the order they are cited. Each has a caption that can be understood on its own.
• Submit figures at a minimum of 300 dpi (photos) or 600 dpi (line art), as TIFF, PNG, JPEG, or vector EPS/PDF files.
• Make sure the text in figures is readable when printed at the final size. Use colour schemes that are easy to read for people with colour-vision deficiency.
• Figures from other publications need written permission from the copyright holder, unless they are openly licensed. Credit the source in the caption.
• Images must not be manipulated (see Publication Ethics, section 2.3). Do not use generative AI to create or alter images of research data.

3.6 Equations

Use the Word equation editor or MathType. Do not paste equations as images. Number displayed equations consecutively, as (1), (2), and so on.

3.7 References

• Use the reference style given on the journal's homepage, and apply it consistently.
• Every in-text citation must appear in the reference list, and every item in the list must be cited.
• Give the DOI for every reference that has one.
• Cite only sources you have read. Avoid excessive self-citation. Citations should support specific statements, not pad the reference list.
• References must be written in Roman script. For sources in other languages, give the original title transliterated into Roman script, followed by an English translation in square brackets.
• Datasets, software, and preprints are cited in the reference list with their persistent identifiers.

Submit through the journal's online submission system, linked from each journal's homepage. If you do not have an account, register first. You will receive an automatic acknowledgement with a manuscript number. Use this number in all correspondence.

Include each of these, under its own heading:

• Author Contributions: CRediT roles for each author (see Authorship).
• Funding: each funder and grant number, or the statement that no specific funding was received (see Competing Interests and Funding).
• Competing Interests: all relevant interests, or "The authors declare no competing interests."
• Ethics Approval and Consent: the committee name, approval number, and date; and how consent was obtained. Alternatively, state why approval was not needed (see Research Ethics).
• Data Availability: where the data can be accessed (see Research Data).
• Use of Generative AI: the tools used and their purpose, or "No generative AI tools were used." This includes SSG's StepSphere (see Generative AI Policy).

• Timelines: see the Peer Review Policy. You can follow the status of your manuscript in the submission system.
• Revisions: send a revised manuscript with the changes highlighted, plus a response letter that answers each comment. The time allowed is normally 15 days for minor revisions and 30 days for major revisions. Extensions are possible on request.
• Proofs: proofs are sent to the corresponding author after acceptance. Please return corrections promptly. Only typesetting errors and essential corrections can be made at proof stage.
• Publication: the article is published online with its DOI as soon as production is complete. It is then included in the next issue.

Fees for each journal, and the waiver policy, are listed on the Article Processing Charges page. Fees are charged only after acceptance. Authors keep copyright, and articles are published under CC BY 4.0 (see Open Access and Copyright).

Contact the journal's editorial office at editorial-office@scientificstepsgroup-ssg.com, giving your manuscript number.